XRP Q4 Performance Lags: Can Institutional Support Turn the Tide?
XRP Q4 Performance Lags – Despite a flurry of bullish headlines surrounding Ripple’s $1 billion acquisitions, XRP continues to underperform among top large-cap cryptocurrencies. While deals like the GTreasury acquisition potentially open Ripple to a $120 trillion market, short-term market conviction around XRP appears muted.
This past month, XRP has been the worst-performing top-five crypto, shedding 17% in value even as Ripple dominated the news cycle. According to AMBCrypto, this disconnect highlights a market gripped by cautious optimism, where even major institutional developments struggle to overcome broader risk-off sentiment.
Longs Dominate, But Is the Market Setup Fragile?
On Binance, long positions have consistently made up over 70% of the XRP/USDT perpetual trading volume throughout October. While this might suggest bullish conviction, some analysts see the skew as a sign of potential long squeeze risks, especially with XRP still trailing key resistance levels.
Adding to the speculative frenzy, two large whales recently opened a combined 450,000 XRP long, with average entries around $2.15. With XRP spot prices hovering about $0.20 above these entries, the trades are currently in the green — but the setup remains fragile.
SEC Decisions Loom Over a High-Risk Setup
Ripple enters a crucial stretch this week as the SEC prepares to respond to XRP ETF filings from major issuers, including Grayscale. The decisions, expected between October 18–25, could be a turning point — or a trigger for volatility.
While long-term potential for XRPL adoption remains intact, the market has yet to flip fully risk-on. With large-caps trading below key supports and investor caution still high after recent crashes, XRP’s path to a $2.50 breakout is far from certain — and may be vulnerable to cascading liquidations.
